Caduet Blog

Blog (9)

SUNDAY, Nov. 4 – Taking too many medications at the same time could lead to repeated fainting episodes, a new study reveals. "Simply stated, the more antihypertensive pills a patient takes, the greater the likelihood of a possible fainting spell under certain circumstances," explained one cardiologist, Dr. David Friedman, chief of Heart Failure Services at North Shore-LIJ's Plainview Hospital in Plainview, N.Y. He was not involved in the new research. In the study, Danish researchers led by Dr. Martin Ruwald of Copenhagen University Hospital Gentofte looked at more than 127,000 patients, median age 64, who were hospitalized for fainting between 1997 and 2009. Of those patients, more than one-fifth had experienced at least two fainting episodes. The researchers found that the risk of repeat fainting rose with the number of medications that patients were taking at the same time. For ... Read more

TUESDAY, May 15 – "Team-based care" should be used to improve patients' blood pressure control, the U.S. Task Force on Community Preventive Services recommended on Tuesday. The recommendation is based on a review of 77 studies that showed improvements in patients' control of blood pressure when they received care from a team of health professionals – a primary care doctor supported by a pharmacist, nurse, dietitian, social worker, or community health worker – rather than a primary care doctor alone. The task force found that team-based care increased the percentage of patients with controlled blood pressure, led to a decrease in both systolic (top number) and diastolic (bottom number) blood pressure, and improved results in patients with diabetes and elevated levels of blood fats. Team members assist primary care doctors by providing support and sharing responsibility for high blood ... Read more

FRIDAY, Sept. 16 – Despite ongoing prevention efforts, a growing number of young children are being accidentally poisoned with medications, according to new research. The study, which was based on data reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers between 2001 and 2008, found that medication poisoning among children aged 5 and under increased by 22 percent, although the number of children in the United States in this age group rose by only 8 percent during the study period. "The problem of pediatric poisoning in the U.S. is getting worse, not better," Dr. Randall Bond, of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, said in a hospital news release. In conducting the study, which is scheduled for publication in the Journal of Pediatrics, the researchers reviewed information on over 544,000 children who landed in the emergency department due to medication poisoning ... Read more

[Posted 09/30/2008] An FDA analysis provides new evidence that the use of statins does not increase incidence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disease often referred to as "Lou Gehrig's Disease." The FDA analysis, undertaken after the agency received a higher than expected number of reports of ALS in patients on statins, is based on data from 41 long-term controlled clinical trials. The results showed no increased incidence of the disease in patients treated with a statin compared with placebo.The FDA is anticipating the completion of a case-control or epidemiological study of ALS and statin use. Results from this study should be available within 6-9 months. FDA is also examining the feasibility of conducting additional epidemiologic studies to examine the incidence and clinical course of ALS in patients taking statins.Based on currently available information, ... Read more

THURSDAY, Sept. 25 – Statins, taken by millions to lower cholesterol, may hinder the body's ability to repair muscles, University of Alabama researchers report. The most frequently reported side effect of statin therapy is fatigue, with about 9 percent of patients reporting muscle pain. As doses of the medication are increased, and physical activity is added, these effects can be more pronounced. These side effects are found in all commonly used statins. "While these are preliminary data and more research is necessary, the results indicate serious adverse effects of statins that may alter the ability of skeletal muscle to repair and regenerate due to the anti-proliferative effects of statins," lead researcher Anna Thalacker-Mercer said in a statement. Results of the study were presented Thursday at a meeting of the American Physiological Society, in Hilton Head, S.C. For the study, ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 20 – Researchers who last year reported a possible link between cholesterol-lowering statin drugs and cancer now say that further analysis has disproved such an association. Statin medications include such blockbusters as Crestor, Lipitor, Pravachol and Zocor. "The bottom line is that there is no evidence from this work, the largest study published to date, that the cholesterol-lowering ability of statins increases the risk of cancer," said Dr. Richard H. Karas, director of preventive cardiology at Tufts Medical Center and leader of a group reporting the finding in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. A little more than a year ago, a report by Karas and his colleagues in the same journal described a slight increase in cancer risk among statin users – about one extra case per 1,000 people. That finding came from 13 trials that gathered information on side ... Read more

FRIDAY, Aug. 15 – Statins reduce the perils facing obese people after they have the bypass surgery that restores blood flow to an endangered heart, a study finds. The study was done to help settle a running controversy about the ill effects of obesity in such cases, said Dr. Christina C. Wee, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, co-director of research in the division of general medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital and lead author of a report in the Aug. 19 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. "We know that obesity, per se, is a risk factor for developing heart disease," Wee said. "But once you develop it, is obesity more detrimental than not being overweight? There have been different studies with results going both ways." To settle the issue, Wee and her colleagues studied the outcome of bypass surgery for 1,314 people in a ... Read more

FRIDAY, Aug. 15 – Statins might quickly help reverse erectile dysfunction among men who have metabolic syndrome, new animal research suggests. A threat to cardiovascular health, metabolic syndrome is also known to raise the risk for erectile dysfunction (ED). The current finding indicates that statins may reduce levels of a specific protein that contributes to ED. "Each condition of metabolic syndrome phenomenon – high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and obesity – independently raises the risk for erectile dysfunction just on their own," explained study author Christopher J. Wingard, an associate professor of physiology with the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. "And so, when all are present in combination as part of this syndrome, you have a situation where you don't even need to be as diabetic or hypertensive as you might otherwise have to be ... Read more

MONDAY, July 28 – Older people who were taking cholesterol-busting statin medications saw their risk for dementia fall by half, a new study found. The finding appears to be more evidence that statins – which include drugs such as Crestor, Lipitor, Pravachol and Zocor – can help maintain brain health. "This is another brick in the wall, in the sense that there is mounting evidence, primarily from observational studies, that there is at least some benefit for prevention of dementia," said lead researcher Mary N. Haan, professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Her team published the findings in the July 29 issue of Neurology. The study involved almost 1,700 Mexican-Americans, aged 60 and older, who were followed for five years. The effort was aimed at people at high risk of developing dementia because of conditions such as high blood pressure, ... Read more

Drugs.com provides accurate and independent information on more than 24,000 prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines and natural products. This material is provided for educational purposes only and is not intended for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.